Stanley b



No. 751,275. l PATENTED FEB. 2, 1904;

v S. B. FLINT.

TILE.

APPLICATION nun MAY 1, 1903.

.NO MODEL.

WITNESSES:- /NVENTOR A TTORNEY Patented February 2, 1904.

PATENT OFFICE.

. STANLEY B. FLINT, OF NEW YORK, N. Y.

.TILEQ.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 751,275, dated February 2, 1904.

Application filed May 1, 1903. SerialNo. 155 ,137. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, STANLEY B. FLINT, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of the city of New York, borough of Brooklyn, in the county of Kings and State of New York, have invented a new and Improved Tile, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description.

My invention relates to improvements in tiling made of resilient material and adapted for floors, walls, steps, and other surfaces.

In this invention the tiles are of such construction that they may be assembled by hooking them together, to the end that. each tile assists in holding a series of other tiles in place and in a manner to prevent separation of the tiles, notwithstanding the fact that they are subjected to strain in any direction, either by compression or by a-pulling force. The tile is of considerable strength, owing to the disposition of the recesses and the construction of the hooking projections. V The tiles are of corresponding shape and size, which enables them to be assembled easily and quickly for covering a surface of any size, and also reduces the cost of manufacture.

My new tile has oppositely-inclined edges at each end portion, thereby forming a tapering projection at one end, while in the other end is a tapering recess. Each side edge of the tile is formed with recesses inclined in opposite directions and producing a projection between oppositely-inclined arms, which are of substantial construction. The tiles are quickly and cheaply assembled by merely hooking the arms of one tile in the recesses of adjacent side tiles, and this operation makes the tapering projection at one end of thetile fit into the recess of another tile, while the recess at the other end of said tile receives the tapering projection of still another tile, whereby each tile has engagement with six adjoining tiles and a sidewise strain is resisted by at least four tiles.

Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification, in which similar characters of reference indicate corresponding parts in both the figures.

Figure 1 is a perspective view of a hooking tile constructed in accordance with my invention; and Fig. 2 is a plan view showing a series of tiles constructed as in Fig. 1 hooked together to form a covering for a floor, wall, or other surface.

My improved tile- 5 is longer in one direction than in the other, and at one end said tilehas oppositely and equally inclined edges 6 7, which meet at the apex 8, and thereby produce'a tapering projection 9 at one end of the tile. In the other end of the tile is produced a recess 10, bounded by inclined edges 11 12, the angle of said edges being equal and conforming to the inclination of the edges 7 6, said projection 9 and the recess versely to each other and meet or join said edges 11 12, the edge 14: being parallel to the edge 6, while the edge 13 is parallel to the edge 7 In one side of the tile are provided the oppositely-inclined recesses 15 16, which form the reversely-inclined arms 18 19, the .free' ends of which substantially oppose one another, and these recesses 15 16 also form in the side edge'of the tile a tapering projection 20, the apex of which is between the arms 18 19 and lies at a point beyond the angles formed by the inner corners of said arms 18 19. The opposite side edge of the tile has recesses 21 22, similar to the'recesses 15 16, and said recesses 21 22 form the arms 23 24 and the in termediate tapering projection 25, these recesses, arms, and projections being of similar arrangement and contour to the corresponding parts on the opposite edge of the tile 5. The improved tile may be made of any suitable material, and it is formed in one piece. For certain purposes I prefer to make the tile of material having a certain amount of resiliency or elasticity, andI have found that rubber of certain strength and hardness is well adapted for the manufacture of the tile, particularly if it is used as a covering for floors, steps, and similar surfaces. It is-to beunderstood, however, that I do not confine myself to the particular 'materialemployed in the manufacture of the tile.

In Fig. 2 of the drawings I have shown a 100 number of tiles hooked together and fitted in engagement one with the other in order to produce a continuous covering for a floor, hall, or other surface. Certain of the tiles are indicated by the reference characters B, C,-D, E, F, and G; but it will be understood that each tile is constructed as an exact counterpart of every other tile and in accordance with the disclosure contained in Fig. l of the drawings. The tile B is arranged in endwise abutting relation to the tile C and to a similar tile adapted to be interposed between the tiles D and F, the tiles D and E are hooked into one side edge of the tile B, while the other tiles F and G have similar engagement with the opposite side edge of the tile B. The projection 9 at one end of the tile B is adapted to fit snugly in a recess, such as 10, of a tile interposed between the members D and F. The recess 10 at the other end of the tile B snugly receives the pointed projection 9 of the tile 0. The recess 15 of the tile B receives the arm M of the tile D, and said tile D has edgewise engagement with the upper half of the tile B. The recess 16 of said tile B receives the arm 23 of the tile E, which engages with the edge of said tile B along the lower half thereof on one side. The tile F has its arm 19 fitted into engagement with the recess 21 on the opposite edge of the tile B, and in a similar way the tile G has its arm 18 hooked into engagement with the recess 22, whereby the tiles F G engage with the upper and lower halves, respectively, of the tile B along the left-hand edge thereof.

It will be understood that the tile B engages at its respective ends with other tiles that are disposed endwise thereto, that the right-hand edge of the tile B engages with similar tiles D E, and that the left-hand edge of tile B is engaged by the tiles F and G, whereby the tile B is operatively connected with a series of six tiles. The tiles mutually cooperate in holding each other in place, and a pulling strain to the right or left of either tile is resisted by at least four of the companion tiles. For example, a strain toward the right on the tile B is resisted by tiles F G C and the other tile adapted for interposition between tiles D and F. The similarity in the construction and dimensions of the tiles enables them to be assembled and hooked together very rapidly and cheaply and each tile possesses considerable strength, because the recesses and the projections thereof are of substantial construction.

The tiles herein disclosed may be made in the ordinary way by cutting and weighing the rubber, placing the same in a mold, and vulcanizing; but the shape is such that the tiles can be stamped from a sheet of vulcanized rubber.

Having thus described my invention, 1 claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent- 1. A tile of the class described, having at one end a projection bounded by inclined edges and at its other end a recess of corresponding form to the projection and also bounded by inclined edges; each side edge of the tile having two hooking-arms which are similarly and oppositely inclined, said arms being spaced relatively to the body of the tile to produce two oppositely-inclined recesses which are separated by an intervening projection.

2. A tile covering for floors and other surfaces, comprising a number of complemental tiles each having projections at two sides and one end thereof, each tile also having a recess at one end and two oppositely and similarly inclined side hooking-arms which are arranged relatively to the intervening side projection to produce oppositely-inclined recesses; said projections and hooking-arms of each tile litting into the side and end recesses of edgewise abutting tiles to secure interlocking engagement of all the tiles for resisting compressive or pulling strains in any direction ed gewisc of said tiles.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

STANLEY B. FLlNT.

Witnesses JNo. M. BITTER, H. T. BERNHARD. 

